Assembly subcommittee reviews HAP accountability, dashboards and encampment grants

At a hearing of the Assembly Budget Subcommittee on Accountability and Oversight, state and local officials and advocates reviewed the state's reporting and accountability work for homelessness funding, focusing on the Homeless Housing Assistance and Prevention (HAP) program and the Encampment Resolution Grant Program.

The Hearing: why it matters

The Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) described new requirements for grantees, public dashboards and a mid‑award corrective action process designed to ensure state homelessness dollars are used to move people into stable housing. HCD said some grantees must meet new conditions to receive the second half of awards and that the department will withhold disbursements for grantees that are not in good reporting standing.

HCD overview and new enforcement levers

Ms. Kirkby, a HCD representative, told the committee that the department has consolidated reporting into online tools and strengthened pre‑disbursement conditions. "Good data helps us make good policy," she said, and HCD is using fiscal and client dashboards to track obligations, expenditures and client outcomes rolling up from HMIS into a statewide HDIS system. She explained that in this round of HAP: grantees must show they have obligated earlier rounds, meet HMIS reporting requirements, have compliant housing elements and, for regions addressing unsheltered homelessness, maintain an encampment response plan consistent with California Interagency Council on Homelessness guidance.

Kirkby said the HAP umbrella for the fiscal year includes roughly $1 billion, with about $760 million in…